Wake up to Insomnia
The word “Insomnia” has been derived from latin word “somnus” which means “sleep”, insomnis means sleepless. Insomnia hence implies “inability to sleep or inadequate sleep”.
Are there types of insomnia?
There are various classifications for insomnia based on the
Duration of insomnia
- Transient (one to several nights)
- Short-term (few days to 3 weeks)
- Long term (for months to years)
Nature of sleep
- Sleep onset (problem in initiating the sleep)
- Sleep maintenance (several awakenings in the day)
- Sleep offset (early morning awakenings)
- Non-restorative (persistent sleepiness)
After classifying the category of insomnia, one can locate the cause for the problem. Based on various possible causes, insomnia has been seen to be of 4 types:
1. Psychophysiologic Insomnia (Eg: extremely stressful event, behavioral problems)
2. Extrinsic Insomnia (Eg: Sudden change of environment, overeating before sleep)
3. Altitude Insomnia (loss of sleep on exposure to high altitude due to respiratory difficulties)
4. Drug/Alcohol dependent (excessive intake of caffeine or alcohol or some other medicines)
How does one diagnose insomnia?
It is best to maintain a sleep diary for atleast 2 weeks to note the nature of your sleep & how you feel through out the day. This will help to diagnose & classify the problem most appropriately. With this the management will become much easier & faster.
Is insomnia inevitably harmful to health?
While inadequate or insufficient sleep for some nights can result into mood swings & restlessness through out the day whereas persistent insomnia can have some adverse consequences in the form of impaired daytime function & can have disturbing effects on other systems of the body as well.
How should one proceed towards management of insomnia?
1. To trace the cause & type of insomnia
2. To decrease the disturbances
3. To focus on improving the quality of sleep and lastly
4. To increase the duration of sleep.
There are several sedatives available for giving the symptomatic relief instantly. However, it is the property of most of the group of sedatives that they make the person psychologically dependent on the drug for inducing sleep.
However, if insomnia has been an impact of some other kind of serious disorder or psychological condition then sedatives are essential to use (only on a physician’s prescription). The most commonly used set of sedatives belong to the group of benzodiazepines, this is found in drugs like diazepam, flurazepam, nitrazepam, midazolam etc. However they have been seen to cause dependence on the user. Some antidepressants & antipsychotic drugs are also used for the same (these have certain side-effects)
So unless it becomes absolutely indispensable to use sedatives one must try & solve the insomnia by simple & easily adaptable changes in one’s lifestyle
Some options are:
- Relaxation therapy – this is the simplest method of inducing sleep. This releases the useless tension & stress from your system.
- Nutrition – Avoid excessive caffeine & alcohol. One must try & consume fresh & raw fruits & vegetables that are easily digestible. Consuming a light diet can keep one fresh.
- One must exercise regularly. Yoga can be of great benefit with its selected forward bending postures that will enhance the blood circulation to the brain & will have a soothing effect.
- Simple meditation techniques can initiate good relaxation & relief.
- Certain herbs like Valerian are also seen to be highly effective
- Aroma oils like chamomile, lavender & orange can be used in couple of different ways to induce relaxation & sleep.
Sleeping adequately is essential to allow our body to rejuvenate itself. However, excessive sleep can also make us drowsy & lethargic. So sleep just right & perfectly sound.
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